Seven Terrorists Killed in 326-day High-Altitude Operation in J&K’s Kishtwar, Says Army

JAMMU:
The Army said on Monday that in the relentless 326-day-long high altitude joint operation in the Chatroo area of Jammu and Kashmir’s Kishtwar district, seven dreaded terrorists have been killed.

Nagrota-headquartered White Knight Corps of the Army said on X that the operation was carried out in challenging conditions in the high-altitude areas of the union territory.

In the post titled “Elimination of Terrorists”, the Army wrote, “Relentless and painstaking high-altitude joint operations were conducted over 326 days in the Kishtwar region. Forces tracked terrorists in challenging conditions of cold, wet and freezing weather across daunting terrain, leading to multiple contacts.”

“Troops of #WhiteKnightCorps, @JmuKmrPolice and #CRPF based on a well-knit intelligence grid established by civil and military intelligence agencies, have finally eliminated all seven dreaded terrorists in Chatroo, Kishtwar,” the post read.

“Technology in the form of FPV drones, satellite imagery, RPAs/UAVs, communication etc was continuously leveraged to assist in operations. The relentless pursuit & resolve of our forces, culminating in elimination of Saifullah and his associates, proves that nothing can stand against the determination, courage and valour of our men in uniform & Intelligence agencies,” the Army said.

Calling it a “massive blow to the terror network”, the Army said in the post, “We serve, We Protect!”

Over a dozen encounters took place between the joint forces and the hiding group of Pakistani Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM) terrorists in the densely forested Chatroo area of Kishtwar during the last year.

As the joint forces kept on the hot pursuit of the group of terrorists, they moved their location from place to place between Kishtwar, Doda, Kathua and Udhampur districts of Jammu division.

It was the relentless hot pursuit of the group by the joint forces that, instead of trying to carry out attacks on the security forces, the group, headed by JeM commander Saifullah, remained constantly on the run till they were eliminated by the joint forces.

Union Home Minister Amit Shah on February 7 chaired a high-level security review meeting in Jammu.

The Union Home Minister had directed the security forces to adopt a mission mode approach to eliminate the terrorists hiding in the hilly areas of Jammu, together with ensuring zero infiltration to bring in complete peace in the union territory.